Man fundraising to buy dad a bionic arm

Jake Crump (l) says his dad Del is looking forward to cooking again

A 22-year-old man who is moving out his family home is fundraising to buy his dad a prosthetic arm as a parting gift.

Jake Crump, from Chard, Somerset, needs to raise £11,000 to buy the bionic arm.

Del Crump had his arm amputated in 1997 after an accident at work. He trapped it inside an industrial wood burner that turned on.

Jake said: "It means a great deal, my parents have been fantastic to me growing up. This is a good opportunity to say thank you."

The online appeal has already raised more than £3,200, and there are also plans for a charity football match in Somerset when fans can return to stadiums.

Jake said: "I've only ever known my dad with one arm, it's normal for me.

"But now he's getting older, the other side of his body is breaking down and he's finding it more and more difficult to carry out everyday tasks.

"To balance him out by giving this arm back will hopefully make life easier for him."

Jake and fiancée Beth say a bionic arm would be "the perfect leaving gift"

Jake and his fiancée Beth Jones thought it would be the perfect leaving gift.

They hope to have raised the money and have the prosthetic arm in place by the end of the year.

"If we can get this over the line then it'll mean the world," Jake, a social media manager, added.

"Dad's very much looking forward to cooking again and being able to multi-task in the kitchen."

'Phantom pains'

In March, Del Crump visited the company who will make his bionic arm to try one for the first time.

"He can sometimes still feel his hand there, he gets phantom pains and can feel the muscles," said Jake.

"When they used a trial hand he was able to see fingers move for the first time in twenty-odd years."

Del Crump said he was "incredibly humbled by the response" to the fundraising campaign.

"The support from the local community and people online has been amazing, and I really can't thank everyone enough. Jake has made me incredibly proud," he said.